Gnosis by Lesaffre vitamin K2 validated by ESC for cardiovascular benefits

01 Sep 2023 --- Biotransformation and fermentation specialist Gnosis by Lesaffre has received clinical substantiation from the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) for the cardiovascular measurements of its MenaQ7 Vitamin K2 in postmenopausal women.

In a research abstract presented by lead author and Ph.D. student Femke de Vries at the annual meeting of ESC this week, the society provided validation that supplementation with the product protects and improves cardiovascular performance.

According to the research, daily supplementation with menaquinone-7 (MK-7 or MenaQ7) improves the elastic properties of vessels and supports healthy blood pressure in women with significant arterial stiffness.

“This abstract strengthens the proof that K2 as MenaQ7 supports healthy cardiovascular function in aging women and can serve as an inexpensive tool for protecting heart health,” says professor Leon Schurgers, lead researcher on the post-hoc analysis and chair of the Gnosis vitamin K2 scientific advisory committee.

Meanwhile, the ESC, in collaboration with the University of Oxford, UK, presented staggering figures about the cost of cardiovascular diseases on European health care expenses, estimated at €282 billion (US$305 billion) for 2021. The cost of general health care and long-term care alone amounts to €155 billion (US$168 billion).

Vascular elasticity 
The secondary post-hoc analysis conducted via Gnosis by Lesaffre’s one-year clinical study in healthy men and women found beneficial effects on elastic properties of the vascular system in postmenopausal women who took 180 mcg of MenaQ7 a day.

Menaquinone-7 (MK-7) is a cofactor for vitamin K-dependent protein carboxylation. The vitamin K-dependent matrix Gla protein (MGP) is synthesized in the vasculature and inhibits vascular calcification and stiffness.ESC concurs that MenaQ7 vitamin K2 by Gnosis reduces arterial stiffness of the vascular system. 

“The results confirm that hormonal changes affect the vasculature and that postmenopausal women exhibit increased vascular stiffness reflected by functional vascular damage. Further, MK-7 supplementation significantly attenuates arterial stiffness in postmenopausal women, in which women with increased stiffness benefit most on blood pressure,” says Schurgers.

Arterial stiffness is a measure of cardiovascular function in blood pressure and clinical studies show that improving K2 status improves these measures by elevating overall cardiovascular health in menopausal women. 

Estrogen and progesterone protect cardiovascular function in women. However, after menopause, when these hormones begin to dwindle rapidly, women are more prone to hypertension and vascular stiffness, as well as accelerated vascular aging, which increases the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). 

In addition, fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, fish and whole-fat dairy products eaten in the right quantities have been identified as “protective foods” that lower the risks of heart attacks and strokes in adults by researchers from McMaster University, Hamilton Health Sciences, Canada and the Population Research Health Institute.

Curbing arterial calcification
Gnosis by Lesaffre’s one-year study demonstrated that the MGP is vital in curbing the calcification in cardiovascular arteries. The findings support those of the three-year intervention study that demonstrated that an increased vitamin K2 intake reduced arterial stiffness.

In the post-hoc analysis of the double-blind, placebo-controlled, clinical intervention trial, the researchers looked for the effects of MK-7 supplementation on vascular stiffness in women who were pre-, peri- and postmenopausal. 

The trial included 166 women, between 40 and 70 years with low K2 status. Pre-, peri- and post-menopausal women were subdivided according to arterial stiffness. 

Measurements of regional carotid-femoral and carotid-radial pulse wave velocities, vessel wall characteristics and arterial blood pressure were taken at baseline and after one year of vitamin K2 supplementation. Post-hoc analyses showed a significant reduction in circulating inactive MGP in plasma levels of MK-7-supplemented pre-, peri- and postmenopausal women. 

Vascular parameters were significantly increased in postmenopausal women and MK-7 supplementation significantly reduced vascular stiffness in these women. Those with a high index showed significantly improved vascular markers, such as decreased blood pressure at brachialis, decreased blood pressure at carotid artery, increased distensibility coefficient and increased compliance coefficient. 

The abstract has been published in the European Heart Journal and is available on ESC 365, the cardiology knowledge hub. The post-hoc analysis will be published in a peer-reviewed journal later this year.

By Inga de Jong